Moving from Apartment to House

Moving from Apartment to House

It can be a big step from renting a relatively small apartment–or even a townhome–to owning your own house. Not only will you need to figure out which of your belongings should move with you, but you might not be fully prepared for the differences between renting and owning. While you’re packing and arranging movers, keep these things in mind.

What Can You Do Before the Move?

There’s no better time for projects such as painting, changing out light fixtures, redoing carpets or flooring, as there is before you’ve moved in. The house will be empty for a little while between signing the paperwork and moving day, so take advantage of it. Not only will this give you the freedom to make your home feel more personal, but it will give you a better sense of the space, where everything might go, and what little quirks your house might have. Once you have furniture and other possessions in the way, you might lose interest in making the place yours once you have to hassle with moving things around or protecting your belongings.

Understanding Your Home

You’re now responsible for everything in the house, from mystery switches that don’t seem to do anything to keeping the pilot lights on. While you’re taking possession of the house, get to know all the details. Go through the breakers and figure out what each one does. Make sure you know how old the water heater and HVAC equipment is, and what maintenance is recommended in the next year or two. Learn to change filters on your own, and locate the main water shutoff valve. If you can, ask the previous owners about energy costs, and also find out about the weird things they’ve just learned to live with.

Planning for Maintenance

Something will break in the first year, and you will be the one responsible for fixing it. Sure, you can always call an expert to help, and for some problems you should, but do you want to pay the hourly rate for a plumber if you can take a plunger to the problem and handle it yourself? If you don’t know much about home maintenance, start finding how-to guides. Video sites such as YouTube are full of tutorials, and there are plenty of blogs to help you along.

Also, you should get a decent set of tools. Talk to some experts at your local hardware store, and see what they recommend. You will, at minimum, want some good screwdrivers, a hammer, a level, tape measure, and a few wrenches. And of course, make sure you have a good supply of duct tape.

Lawn Care

Most renters don’t ever need to worry about their lawns. Even if you’ve rented a house before buying one, many landlords will take care of lawn maintenance for you. So the first question is, do you have a mower? How often do you want to mow–and what is the local neighborhood association’s standard? Do you have a weed wacker, brush trimmers, work gloves, rake, and shovel? Do you have a plan for gardening or decorating your house? If you don’t have a clear idea in mind, this is a great time to talk to friends or experts who are into this kind of thing.

Furniture and Decorating

If you’re like most renters, the furniture and decorations you’ve had to this point were chosen more for their cost and relative ease of transportation rather than how well it will fit your decor. Now’s the time to think about what you want your place to look like. Furniture can get expensive, so budget well. A house loan might have enough wiggle room to get you started, but also consider what you want before you move in. What do you have that will work? What do you want to change? Can you find good second hand or consignment furniture that works with your overall scheme?

And when it comes time to move, don’t forget to consult with the experts, like your friends at Gerber Moving & Storage.

Request an Estimate

The best way to give you a fair, accurate price is to have a Gerber representative visit your home or business. This service is free—there is no charge for us to do an on-site survey and prepare an estimate.

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Testimonial

When we decided to move, we were on a short time table. Your team explained the entire process, took a visual inventory, discussed all of your services, and followed up promptly, with a good price, and a set delivery date.

They completed the loading process earlier than expected and Tracy had us take a walk through the house to insure that there was no damage to walls or flooring and that everything was loaded.

Suffice to say, the move went extremely well and my wife and I are very happy that we chose Gerber Moving.

Alan & Darline Smith

We want that same crew next time!
I just want to reiterate how impressed we were with the crew that worked our job yesterday. They made a stressful day much less so.

Patrick A., Overland Park, KS

Fantastic move, thanks to Gerber Moving and Storage!
We have moved many times with many different companies, and this was THE BEST! Not one item damaged, fast, courteous service from the very first contact with Mike Gerber to the final unloading of houshold goods including a piano, organ, keyboards, and office computer equipment--all the way up to an 11th floor condominium! Thanks to everyone at Gerber!

The Ramseys

I called today & spoke with Bob to schedule our next move with Gerber Moving and Storage because we were really impressed with their moving crews last time.

Happy Repeat Customer

Upon arriving at our new home and business office, Gerber went the extra mile to make sure that everything was set up to our satisfaction.

I would strongly recommend Gerber Moving and Storage’s professional help and management team to anyone that is considering a move.

Ed Toomey

The staff at Gerber Moving and Storage were a great help during this stressful time in our life.

Ed & Linna Toomey

The personnel that were sent to our home took charge and moved items in our home as if they were their own personal furnishings.

Happy Kansas City, MO Family

We can highly recommend using Gerber Moving & Storage for your next move be it as simple as delivering a Piano to an Interstate entire household move.

T.Martin Lesh.

As well as Gerber Moving & Storage's ability to do a Door to Door move from Kansas City to Denver (rather than handing off to one of the large interstate companies) saving us money (the smaller truck meant no need for shuttle service and the extra cost that entails) along with giving us the confidence that in fact Mike Gerber & Co. was overseeing the process every step of the way.

Gerber's crews (packing - loading - driver/unloading) were not only timely and professional .... but were also extremely personable and enjoyable to be around making the process less a source of stress and more something to look forward to each day.

From getting the estimates (which were extremely accurate) - to finalizing the contracts - to the packing - loading out - delivery and unpacking: right down to Mike Gerber arranging transport for my wife's car: each and every step of the way was a positive experience.

Over the last eight years my wife and I have moved a total of five times: both Interstate and Local. Having used many companies including a couple of the large national ones we can say point blank that our move from Kansas City, MO to Denver, CO with Gerber Moving & Storage was by far the best moving experience we've ever had.

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